Milkweed for Monarchs!

This is the future. Currently the sturdy milkweed plants are in blossom, attracting a host of pollinators — including monarch butterflys. In the cycle of life the butterfly eggs will hatch into tiny caterpillars which will munch on the leaves and grow to multiple times their original size.
We call it a weed. This is one plant which can wear the label with pride. It’s a sturdy thing, likes sunshine, and serves as a necessary host to one of the more beautiful, delicate migrants of North America.
Even florists appreciate them. The seed pods which are green in the photo — when they mature and release their seeds on silky parachutes they leave behind a husk that ends up adding shape and depth to many dried flower arrangements.